Update: Three more screens have been added, past the jump. They’re a bit blurry, having been taken on a cell phone, but they hint at an Asian-flavored art design. EQNext also seems to be a reboot of the original story in some capacity.

Update 2: Cell phone pics removed. Higher resolution versions of those and more pictures can be found here.

Sony Online’s (remember them?) yearly dedication to dead or dying MMO franchises — the “Fan Faire” — is underway this weekend, and the headlining act is none other than the one that put them on the map in the first place: the venerable EverQuest. Since it’s looking a bit like Christina Aguilera next to Blizzard’s Lady Gaga these days, the only way to get any real attention is to make a really bold move.

You may recall that SOE recently took the first step towards franchise resuscitation by pushing the ailing EverQuest II into the freemium market, with an “extended” version that mimics the pay-for-content scheme Turbine has already introduced to Dungeons and Dragons Online and Lord of the Rings Online (with much aplomb). The beta test for that will begin just a couple of weeks from now on August 17th. Likewise, news from the conference tells us that the good ol’ original is trucking right along with its seventeenth expansion. Titled House of Thule, and slated for October 14th, it gives players access to a handful of new dungeons and player housing. See, WoW fans? You’ve only got about another decade until Blizzard finally figures it out (assuming the apocalypse, alien visitation, or return of Jesus doesn’t happen first).

EQII will be getting its own expansion, Destiny of Velious, as well, but players will have to wait until early next year. It’ll introduce a load of flying mounts (and presumably many other neat, experience-enhancing things) to the game. The EverQuest guys are so good at this add-on business by now that they can knock them out about as often as Nadya Suleman pops out babies.

But the real important thing here is the future of the franchise. Though we only got a little tease, an itty, bitty taste of what’s to come, Sony may just be making the move it needs to stage a comeback with the tentatively titled “EverQuest Next.” Though more information has been promised soon, all we know at the moment is what we can glean from the two pieces of media below:

Is this real life...

...or just a fantasy?

One of these two images is concept art, and the other one isn’t. A careful eye can discern the two, but at first glance, it’s a bit hard to tell, isn’t it? EQNext seems to be dumping the pseudo-realism of past games in favor of a more jaunty look that some are already equating to Fable. I think it looks good, but experience also tells me that looks don’t amount to much when there aren’t great mechanics there to back it up. EverQuest went a long way towards defining the future of MMORPGs, but the genie has long since been let out of the bottle. The genre is a lot more crowded than it used to be and innovation (with far more failures than success stories) is everywhere. Whatever may happen, Sony Online is going to have to really step up their game if they want to get their marquee franchise back on top.

Click to extend. Man, I am SO creative.

Dungeons & Dragons Online transforming from a subscription-based MMORPG to a freemium (hybrid of free-to-play and subscription models) title was a shock.  Lord of the Rings Online following suit was a bit unexpected, but not earth shattering.  Sony Online Entertainment tossing EverQuest 2, the behemoth of its Station games, into the fray returned my jaw to the floor.

I’m not familiar enough with the game and community, but I don’t think as many people will be screaming that the decision will “be the end of [insert beloved object here].”  That’s not because the news isn’t shocking.  It is.  It’s because SOE is segregating its freemium players from the standard subscribers, which should allow the subscriber base to keep the hair on their heads.

The subscribers will not have to deal with newbs, like myself, because they will be playing on entirely separate servers called EverQuest 2 Extended.  These servers will allow interested parties to play for free (Bronze) with a variety of limitations (see thumbnail) that should be familiar to anyone following DDO’s or LotRO’s conversions.  Pay a small one-time fee (Silver) and gain some additional perks such as expanded chat options, more character slots and higher spell tiers.  Or you can even subscribe (Gold membership) on the freemium servers to guarantee yourself a nearly limitless experience.  A one-year membership (Platinum, which costs $16.66 a month) nets you the full plate and an additional $60 worth of Station Cash.  I can only assume that you would use it to purchase expansions and fluff items.

Before you ask, there’s a very good reason to have subscriptions available on the segregated servers.  You may not realize how much you enjoy your characters, guild and the game (and how much you’ve spent piecewise) until you’re time committed to your realm.  You’d hate to be forced to leave all that for uncharted territory, right?

Head over to the full announcement to read more.

To the EQ2 players out there, is the sky falling?  To the rest of the MMOG community, do you welcome this trend, or fear it?